As someone who writes on occasion about where he eats, I'm prone toward elitism. Yeah, I admit it. I like to write about the times I eat like a resident of the Left Bank. C'est vrai, non?

Truth is, I'm as proletariat as the next guy. Which is why this afternoon, when I was out scouting for a lunch place with my brother, I bypassed any number of haute cuisine spots to eat at … Shari's on North Monroe.

I'm no stranger to the place. For years, friends and I have been eating Saturday-morning breakfasts there every month or so. We go there so often that one of the servers always recognizes us. And one thing I know about Shari's is that it offers a senior menu that is both healthy and inexpensive.

The meal above, for example. I ordered a two-egg omelet, with hash browns and sour-dough toast, while my brother opted for a quiche, with fresh fruit and an English muffin. Both of us drank coffee, which was just as strong as I wanted it.